THIS CHRISTMAS One of two holiday films that tell stories about black people – specifically black families. The other being the upcoming PERFECT HOLIDAY starring Morris Chestnut, and Gabrielle Union.THIS CHRISTMAS (TC) is as predictable and as simplistic as one might expect a film like it to be. But that makes it easier to digest, if, going in, you know just what you’re in for. The proverbial family drama but without very much real drama… no one is ever in any real quandary, even though the filmmakers try to make us believe that they are, not only because we know the clichéd Hollywood happy ending is forthcoming, but also because every dilemma feels a little too sugary sweet, wrapped up in mawkishness, didactics, and often suspect acting and dialogue deliveries.It’s clear that the film wants you to love it at all costs… to have that wonderful, joyous feeling afterwards. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with that. And one could even say that it succeeds, given the wonderful response it received from the near-sold-out audience I saw it with on Friday afternoon – an audience that was made up disproportionately of boys and girls under 21 years old – thanks in large part to the presence of adolescent R&B heartthrob, Chris Brown, who by the way, belts out two musical numbers during the 2-hour run of the film… maybe 1 too many, unless of course you’re a fan, which I can’t say that I am. With this film and Tyler Perry’s WHY DID I GET MARRIED (WDIGM), I’m left wondering one thing: I hope these 2 films aren’t indicative of the make up of black families in this country, or just families in general, with every member of each family hoarding some potentially hurtful secret from all the others – secrets that are naturally revealed, either by consent or by force, in calculated precision points throughout the film, meant almost solely to push the film forward and add some needed dramatics to the rather dull, routine characters and story. The difference between WDIGM and TC is that the family machinations of TC are less unrealistic than the somewhat preposterous set ups in Perry’s film, but they still leave much to be desired.
I couldn’t help think of SOUL FOOD (SF) before, during and while watching this. I haven’t watched SF in years, so it barely registers with me, but the story dynamics seem similar – large families in some order of dysfunction, brought together by the sheer will/presence (even posthumously) of the family matriarch, a woman who is more often than not a replica of the disparaging Aunt Jemima or Mammy stereotype, which means she’s heavy (in terms of weight and physical type), somewhat servile, hopelessly selfless, asexual, and of course full of a never-ending stream of words of wisdom. Not that people like this don’t exist in real life, but there’s a good reason why it’s called a stereotype. It’s rather trite, and limiting in its depiction of the middle-aged to elderly black woman in America – one that we have seen duplicated almost ad nauseam by, unfortunately, comical black men in drag and fat suits, as was the case by Martin Lawrence (twice in the BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE series), and of course by Tyler Perry, in his MADEA films. Certainly our mothers and grandmothers are significantly more varied than portrayals like those will have us believe. With all the clandestine activity rampant throughout the film, those with short attention spans will likely be captivated for most of the 2 hours; the rest of us will have to rely on those few moments of genuine development which, for me, happened during the first 30 or so minutes of the film, as each character was introduced, their pros and cons. Although, there was one particularly humorous scene which involved a bottle of baby oil, a shower, a wet towel and a belt. Those who’ve seen the film know what I’m referring to. No, it’s not some sexually charged set-up… this is a family film remember. But it actually managed to generate an impulsive laughter out of me… which is saying a lot, for those who know me well enough.And can we actually have a film about a family with members of the family who actually look like they’re from the same mother and father? The running archaic racist joke is that we, black people, all look alike, so I don’t know if the filmmakers are subconsciously attempting to dispel that myth by populating the film’s family with siblings and parents who look absolutely nothing like each other. Can we have maybe even a smidgen of familiarity… other than the fact that they are all black… or some obvious trend/similarity, whether in height, or lip size… something. Overall, a rather lukewarm reception from me… but then again, I don’t think I’m the film’s target audience, being the publicly labelled film elitist that I’ve become. But I appreciated its generally good intentions, and would like to see it succeed in the marketplace. I suppose one could find a compliment or two in there somewhere.It was well-received by the audience I saw it with, and given the box-office results on opening weekend ($25 Mill), other audiences appreciated it as well. It’ll be interesting to see if it has any legs going into next weekend.
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Tambay A Obenson
www.obensonreport.com